Demountable stand



N. suLENTlc v DEMOUNTABLE STAND Feb. 2l, i939.,

Filed Sept. 9, 1937 l Snventor ffzlch @Zas SuZe/n zizlc,

Gtto eg Patented Feb. 21, 1939 UNI'IV'ED STATES ATENT OFFICE.

2 Claims.

My invention relates to improvements in demountable stands or the like, and an important object of my improvements is to provide a supi por-ting device of separable interlocking elements, 5 so related that no other means are required for fastening these elements together than co'acting engaging means on the elements themselves and mutually parts thereof, for convenient assem blage or disassemblage, and also for compact packing together of the disassembled parts, for compact storage and inexpensive transportation.

This object I have achieved in the combina* tion of self-locking disassemblable standards and shelving which are herein illustrated in the drawing, described in the specification and in the. accompanying claims. i

It will be understood, that various changes may be made in the various elements of my invention, their respective shapes and effective coactions and separable self-locking means, without departing from the claims herein.

I have, however, shown two slightly different constructions, in both of which my new coacting and disassemblable engaging and locking means are displayed for like uses, yet differentially in the respective dispositions of the releasably interlocking engaging projections and sockets thereof.

Figs. land 2 are respectively slightly different designs of demountable stands connected in their parts and fastening means according to the principles of my invention, and both in perspective. Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view, on an enlarged scale, of shelf and standard demountable connections according to my invention, with other parts broken away. Fig. 4 is a perspective of they engaging tongues on one of the standards. Fig. 4a is a front elevation showing the inpressed pocket or socket part on a shelf flange used for coacting releasable locking engagement with one of the tongues on a standard. Fig. 5 is an enlarged medial vertical section, of a diagrammatic showing of interlocked tongue and pocket means on contacting parts of a standard and shelf, while Fig. 6 is a like View thereof as inverted and ern ployed in some installations.

Fig. 7 is an enlarged inner face view of one of the standards, showing the pressed out tongue as having one side edge shaped with differently inclined parts. Fig. 8 is a cross section of the '50 same standard showing said tongue in side edge elevation. Fig. 9 is an outer face view of a broken away portion of said standard and as covering a shelf wall partially, showing the tongue and slot connection therebetween interlocked at their respectively differently angled edges.

In Fig, 1 is shown a pair of horizontal superposed shelves i and 9 respectively, both having rear and side vertically disposed walls as shown at A t and i8, and at 8 and 9a, and respectively having downturned longitudinal front flanges 5 and 1, but these may if desired be' erect like the other wall anges mentioned, or the forward edges' of the shelves may be unflange'd if desired. The numerals i and 2` referto corner standards for supporting said shelves and of angle steel prefer-V 1`0` ably, the forward standards 2 being short and releasably secured to the forward standards only, while the rear standards I are elongated above the shelf t and to support the rear corner wal-1s 8 and 9a of the upper shelf 9.

In Fig. 2 is shown a varied form of doubledecked stand in which like angle-bar standards ii are similarly releasably interlocked with the upraised walls I3 and i5 of the like rectangular shelves I2 and it respectively. 20

Referring now to the other figures, in Fig. 4a a part of an upturned flange i5 for the shelf f4 is shown in elevation as seen from the outside of a standard il (Fig. 2), in which a socket is pressed at il in the same inwardly to leave its 2li top opening upwardly and its bottom bent inwardly as a stop. In Fig. 4 is shown a perspective of a portion of the standard l I in whose one side part is pressed inwardly a pair of like superposed tongues I6 out away from the standard at 30 tops and sides to provide them with a lower end inward shoulder with the tongue projecting thence upwardly spaced from the inner wall of the standard. In Fig. 3 is shown the standard il, or vI respectively, showing it releasably inter- 35 locked with a shelf 9 as shown in Fig. 1, and in which the tongue I6 of each of a vertically disposed pair thereof has been inserted in a. socket Il of a shelf flange l5 to engage or contact tightly against the inner wall thereof. The said parts 40 as coengaged, may be pressed together by any suitable tools to engage tightly together.

, In the particular stand of Fig. l, the upper shelf 9 is narrower than the lower shelf 4', hence flat bar standards 3 are employed to support the 4.5 forward corners of the upper shelf, the bars 3 being releasably connected at their upper and lower terminations respectively to inner parts of the side flanges 6 outwardly of the lower shelf 4 by said tongue and socket connections, except 50 that the connections therebetween at the lower parts of the bars 3 are reversed in position as shown in Fig. 6 and at lb in Fig. l. The device of Fig. 2 has all of its tongue and socket connections between the shelf flanges and the standards 55 directed upwardly, as are all of the other connections in Fig. 1 save those shown at Ib. As the device of Fig. 2 will have the loadings of its shelves I2 and I4 exerting downward pressures tending to keep the tongue and socket coacting parts interlocked firmly when in use as carriers, these stands serve as transferablefloor stands for displaying goods for convenient access to a salesman in serving a customer.

The demountable stand of Fig. 1, serves the same purposes, while the lower tongue and socket connections IGb as inverted and shown in Fig. 6 lock their joints at medial places on the side flanges 6 of the lower shelf 4, where the loading on the upper shelf 9 keeps them in coacting locking engagement with the lower shelf 4. There is thus provided a certain opposed coaction between the two sets of joints above and below, to keep the stands rigid in use for carrying relatively heavy loads.

There being no separate locking devices for securing these stand elements together releasably, the constructions are relatively inexpensive to manufacture, and rigid in use. The shelves being easily demountable from the standards, these parts may be stored knocked down in piles, or for carriage at small expense because of decreased shipping bulk.

Said Figures '7, 8 and 9 specically show the contour of the tongue, and also the related shape of the punched out aperture I'la as also shown in Fig. 4a. Referring to said Figs. '7 and 8, the tongue I6 has one side edge IGb vertical or nearly so, while the lower part I6d of the opposite side edge is inclined inwardly relatively to the rst mentioned side edge, and has the upper part of its side edge at |60 inclined at a greater angle inwardly to thus provide a terminally diminished upper terminal |66 for easy insertion as shown in Fig. 9 into the aperture IIa of the shelf wall I5. It will be seen that the aperture lial has a right-hand side edge Ia, and that when the tongue Ie is inserted as shown in the dotted line of Fig. 9, this terminal I6@ may by suitable tools be compressed to close the gap between it and the inner face of the well Il. The frictional coacting engagement, or contact between the tongue edge parts I6c and IGd with the abutting inner edges of the wall I5, will cause the parts at that location to interlock wedgingly horizontally at and near the junction of the tongue edge parts Hic and |611, so that the stand in either case may be lifted without separation of its parts, and sustain much strain without becoming loose, as when being lifted.

'I'he same result occurs when some of the coacting tongue and slot features, as shown in Fig. 1 at ISb as reversed in relative positions, remain locked wedgingly as against strains either up or down vertically.

The shapes of the tongues, and of the slots Ila, may be otherwise designed or varied from those shown, without departing from the said principles of my invention.

I claim:

1. In a device of the character described, a carrier member and a second carrier member spaced therefrom upwardly, said members having respectively pressed-out open-top, closed bottom and side-Walled socket parts projecting inwardly, and standard members contacting with said carrier members and having pressed-out tongue parts inserted in and releasably interlocked angularly at one side edge with said pressed-out socket parts, the pairs of tongue and socket parts connecting the one carrier member to the standard members being reversed in position with respect to the tongue and socket parts connecting the other carrier to the standard members for opposite separation of the two carriers with respect to the standard members.

2. In a device of the character described, a carrier member and a second carrier member spaced therefrom upwardly, said members having respectively pressed-out open-top, closed bottom and side-walled socket parts projecting inwardly, each socket part having one side wall inclined upwardly inwardly relatively to the opposite side wall thereof, and standard members contacting with said carrier members and having pressedout tongue parts, each tongue part having one side Wall inclined toward the other side wall at a different and lesser angle terminally, and releasably interlocked at its wider angle with the abutting side wall of the receiving socket part.

NICHOLAS SULENTIC. 

